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December 21, 2024
 

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Owen Ziegler
Owen Ziegler is an editor at The Japan Times in charge of Lifestyle and Food. For pitches, contact him at [email protected].
While FromSoftware's Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree is a strong contender for game of the year, Black Myth: Wukong, the first AAA game made by a Chinese developer, offers some stiff competition.
LIFE / Digital / 2024 in Review
Dec 6, 2024
It’s Japan versus China for 2024’s game of the year
Elden Ring: Shadow of the Erdtree and Black Myth: Wukong both have a claim to the best game of 2024, a year marked by cultural scandals and lawsuits.
Best known as the home of Kuon Temple, Minobu, Yamanashi Prefecture, is a charming day trip from Tokyo with the potential for cultural verisimilitude.
LIFE / Travel
Nov 23, 2024
In rugged Yamanashi, a wild-goose chase for ‘real Japan’
Japan’s countryside certainly offers a different experience than its cities, but whether that makes it categorically superior is up for debate.
El Lequio is a unique watering hole on Naha's main Kokusai-dori street — which works both to its benefit and detriment.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Nov 10, 2024
Is Okinawa ready for a bar like El Lequio?
The bar describes its vibe as “Nikkei Latino” (the name comes from the moniker given to Okinawa by Age of Exploration sailors from Spain), and it’s pleasantly disarming.
Ryoma Takeuchi (right) is perfectly cast as Kazuma Kiryu, a Jack Reacher-esque character of impermeable physicality in Amazon Prime’s new series “Like a Dragon: Yakuza.”
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Oct 25, 2024
Amazon’s ‘Like a Dragon: Yakuza’ pulls its biggest punch
Amazon’s new series based on the long-running Ryu Ga Gotoku games flattens the quirkiest elements of the Kamurocho red-light district for a run-of-the-mill crime drama.
Black Myth: Wukong has sold over 10 million copies in less than a week — by far the best launch of a Chinese-developed single-player game in history.
LIFE / Digital
Aug 27, 2024
With Black Myth: Wukong, China is now a force to reckon with in AAA games
Can China’s first AAA gaming hit bear the weight of the cultural baggage it’s being burdened with?
Located in Yokohama's chic Minato Mirai neighborhood, the Kahala Hotel & Resort opened in 2020 but still has the feeling of a newly launched accommodation.
LIFE / Travel
Jul 13, 2024
The paradox of a five-star Hawaiian-themed hotel in Yokohama
What manner of overseas tourist would come all the way to Japan just to stay at a Hawaiian-themed hotel?
Ryoma Takeuchi (right) will star as the protagonist in an upcoming adaptation of the Like a Dragon game franchise directed by Masaharu Take (left).
LIFE / Digital
Jun 6, 2024
When will a Japan-made game have a breakout TV adaptation?
There are far too many gems in the Japanese gaming world for there not to be even one capable of translating to success as a TV series.
Yasuke, a historical Black samurai, will star in the newly announced Assassin's Creed Shadows — a choice that has riled some critics online.
LIFE / Digital
May 25, 2024
Gaming's latest culture war targets Yasuke, Japan's Black samurai
For a vocal minority of gamers, a Black protagonist of a game set in feudal Japan was a call to war.
Mikuni Minato is not a town that has recently fallen on hard times — it's been that way for a century.
LIFE / Travel
May 7, 2024
48 hours in Mikuni Minato, Japan’s port town that time forgot
A trip to Mikuni Minato may not appeal to the average tourist, but well-traveled residents will find it fascinating.
The Iconic Suite's bedroom features recessed lighting and corner windows with sweeping views of the Nagoya metropolis.
LIFE / Travel
Mar 2, 2024
Nagoya’s newest luxury hotel is full of hits and one big miss
The Royal Park Hotel Iconic Nagoya feels ready to deliver top-quality stays — but only if your budget can handle it.
In the quest for immortality, some researchers believe mind uploading will be our ticket to an eternal existence.
PODCAST / deep dive
Feb 8, 2024
Japan’s take on immortality; problems in Palworld
As scientists and technologists attempt to tackle the problem of aging and death, we discuss Japanese ideas about immortality.
Has runaway hit Palworld gotten itself into hot water with The Pokemon Company?
LIFE / Digital
Jan 25, 2024
The Pokemon Company to Palworld: ‘We intend to investigate’
“We have not granted any permission for the use of Pokemon intellectual property or assets in that game,” The Pokemon Company said in a statement.
Fans praised Nintendo for following up one of the best open-world games ever made with The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, a worthy sequel that introduced enough new mechanics to keep the experience fresh for players new and old alike.
CULTURE / 2023 in Review
Dec 22, 2023
Zelda was a gem among many in a crowning year for gaming
Japanese studios’ hits included: Street Fighter 6, remakes of Metroid Prime and Resident Evil 4, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, to name a few.
A still from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom
PODCAST / deep dive
Dec 14, 2023
Big in Japan 2023: Anime, Murakami and The Legend of Zelda
Our guests tell us why anime dominated in 2023, which books stood out among a lackluster crowd and why the Zelda franchise is experiencing a renaissance.
From a ceremony in Turku, Finland, the Michelin Guide announced the world's crop of starred restaurants for 2024.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Dec 8, 2023
183 Tokyo restaurants awarded Michelin stars for 2024
High-end sushi restaurant Harutaka is the newest addition to the city’s three-Michelin-star club.
After years of pining, gamers are finally getting the live-action Zelda movie they've always wanted.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Nov 8, 2023
A live-action Legend of Zelda movie is in development
A live-action Zelda movie has been a holy grail of video game adaptations for decades, and now that day has come.
Former firefighter Yoshifumi Usui now guides tourists in search of active pursuits in and around the Aso caldera.
LIFE / Travel
Oct 21, 2023
In volcanic Aso, the land gives much more than it takes
Locals in Aso have a saying: “The land takes away, but it gives us something, too.”
On Oct. 17, the world's best bartenders gathered in Singapore for a celebration of cocktails and the announcement of this year's global rankings.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 17, 2023
Japan's SG Club, Ben Fiddich named to World’s 50 Best Bars list
Aside from the rankings, the impact of Japan's elite cocktail culture was a visible influence throughout the evening.
This year's Tokyo Game Show attendance came up just shy of 2019's draw — an encouraging sign for the event's future.
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Oct 7, 2023
A dark fantasy spin on ‘Pinocchio’ may put FromSoftware under pressure
It wasn’t the biggest TGS ever, but it's hard to imagine anyone behind the scenes at TGS headquarters pulling their hair out over 2023’s return to form.
LIFE / Digital
Sep 21, 2023
Tokyo Game Show returns in full force with ‘largest-ever’ event
Participants at the gaming convention should expect long wait times for demos, but the Final Fantasy remake is worth it.
Mother hopes for reunion with daughter ensnared by Tokyo host clubs
The Kabukicho district in Tokyo, where the daughter of a woman in her 60s fell deeply into the host club culture.
A year after going private, structural reforms bearing fruit for Toshiba
Toshiba's Corporate Senior Executive Vice President Koji Ikeya speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
Taiwan lawmakers brawl over bills that would 'damage democracy'
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party and opposition party Kuomintang brawl in parliament in Taipei on Friday.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
Police raided suspect's home to arrest him after fatal Kitakyushu stabbing
Broken window glass is seen at Masanori Hirabaru's house in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward.
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.
A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
Curiosity didn’t kill the meme: Why cats still rule Japanese YouTube
A screen shot from YouTube user @lagelda shows the simplicity of going viral in Japan in 2024: A cat dancing to EDM in front of a green screen.
With rare Asia carrier deployment, France seeks greater interoperability
The flight deck of the French Navy's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier during a stop at Changi Naval Base in Singapore in May 2019

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Yasuyuki Yoshida stirs a brew in a fermentation tank at his brewery in Hakusan.
The quake that shook Noto's sake brewing tradition
By Alex K.T. Martin

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